Because I often use my personal vehicle for work, I am able to count the miles and write them off when it comes time to pay taxes. The thought of paying less taxes led me to install an app on my phone that tracked how many miles I traveled. It made keeping track of trips much easier. However, when I shared my idea with my tax accountant, she thought it would be better for me to charge the company the mileage instead of writing off the miles. I appreciated her idea but wasn’t convinced. I continued to keep track of my personal miles thinking of the savings I would have on Tax Day. Some months later, I realized my ignorance of tax law. As it turns out, the amount of miles I drove would not put me over the standard deduction. Despite my zealous ideas, I was actually ignorant of what was required.
Sadly, there are many people who are ignorant about things that are much more important. What does God require for a person to be right with Him? This is an important question. But many are ignorant of what God requires. So, they attempt to establish their own standard of good living in an attempt to please God. In our passage today, we will see what God thinks about this kind of ignorance and what He actually requires.
- What does it say? (Rom. 10:1-13)
Paul told his brothers in Rome that he strongly desired and prayed to God that Israel might be saved. He noted their zeal for God but that they lacked knowledge. They were ignorant of God’s righteousness, were trying to establish their own, and had not submitted to God’s righteousness.
Paul noted that Christ is the end of righteousness by law keeping for everyone who believes. Moses wrote about the righteousness which comes from the law—”whoever obeys the laws will live by them.” However, the righteousness of faith says this. Don’t say in your heart, “Who will ascend into heaven?” (to bring Christ down from above), or, “Who will descend into the depths?” (to bring up Christ from the dead). What does it say? “The word is near to you in your mouth and heart” (the word of faith that they preached).
If you confess the word with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Because a person believes in his heart to obtain righteousness and confesses with his mouth to obtain salvation. The Bible says that all who believe in Him will not be ashamed. There is no distinction between a Jewish or non-Jewish person because the same Lord is over all of them and is rich toward all who call on Him. “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” - What does it mean?
Some people were ignorant (Rom. 10:1-3).
They needed God’s help (1). Paul was very concerned about the Jewish people because they needed God’s help. Despite their opposition to him on many occasions, he wanted what was best for them. Notice the word “desire” in verse one. It comes from the same Greek word εὐδοκία1 used by the angels to shout about God’s good will to men. For Paul, he truly wanted what was best for them and even prayed to God for them. What help did they need? They needed to be saved. Saved from what? Paul explains the problem in the next verse.
They needed knowledge (2). As a former Jewish activist, Paul knew all about the people he was talking about. They were extremely zealous. A zealous person is someone who is a fanatic about what he believes. It takes over his entire life. You may recall that Jesus ran into the zealous Pharisees on numerous occasions. At one point, he accused them of zealously tithing their spices but neglecting justice, mercy, and faith (Matt. 23:23). It wasn’t that they were wrong to tithe. It was that they were so zealous about the small things that they forgot about the weightier things of the law. It is true that they were zealous for God, but they were also ignorant about what God really wanted.
They needed to submit (3). With a desire to help them, Paul noted their ignorance of God’s righteousness. Righteousness is a big word that has been described as “what is in agreement with God’s standards.”2 These religious people were zealously trying to prove that they were perfectly right with God because of their many good deeds. The problem was that they were ignorant of what God truly wanted. God knows that all of us “fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). None of us can ever live up to God’s perfect standards. Instead of trying to become righteous on their own, they needed to submit to God’s righteousness.
That brings up a question. If God didn’t want them to try to become righteous on their own, how could they submit to His righteousness? Paul begins to explain this in the next verse.
Some people were blind (Rom. 10:4-8).
They didn’t see Christ (4). In this verse, Paul stated that Christ was the end of the law for righteousness to each person who believed. There are two parts to this statement. The first part is that righteousness by the law had come to an end. In the past, God had given the Israelites the responsibility of obeying His laws. They were meant to guide them and keep them going in the right direction. This had come to an end. The second part is that Christ ended this kind of righteousness for those who believe.
This is what the zealous Israelites could not see. As they sought to be righteous by obeying the Law, they couldn’t understand how Jesus had changed that for those who believed Him. Can you see the difference? Let me explain. Jesus is the perfect Son of God who became a man. He lived a perfectly righteous life (never sinned), died on the cross to pay for our sins, and then came back to life. When someone believes in Jesus, he believes that Jesus accomplished what he could not and that God attributes Jesus’ righteousness to everyone who believes.
They didn’t see what they lacked (5). Sadly, many of these zealous Israelites could not see this. They were blind to their own insufficiencies and thought that God would accept them if they obeyed the law as best they could. Notice what Moses said about this. “The man who does those things shall live by them.” What was he saying? Paul said that this is the righteousness of the law, meaning that if someone could have obeyed all the laws that God had given, then he could consider himself to be righteous. The religious zealots took the challenge but didn’t recognize how far they fell short of God’s standard.
They didn’t see the truth (6-8). In contrast with works righteousness, Paul presented the righteousness of faith. He quoted and (at the same time) applied what Moses said in Deuteronomy 30:11-14. In that passage, Moses told the people that what they needed was not something they had to search for. It was very near to them. Paul used that idea to explain the proximity of the truth about Jesus. They didn’t have to bring Jesus down from heaven or to raise him from the dead. The truth was right there for them to believe if they could see it.
That brings up another question. What was this truth that they had been ignorant about and blind to? Paul explained it in verses 9-13.
Some people believed (Rom. 10:9-13).
They responded correctly (9-10a). While others were ignorant and blind to the truth, some people had responded correctly. Paul pointed out that the proper response involved a believer’s spoken words and inward belief. First, those who responded correctly stated that Jesus is Lord. But what exactly does that mean?
“The Lord” is a title that shows respect toward someone. He is considered the one who should be obeyed. Sometimes, this term refers to God (Matt. 1:22) and other times to someone who is in charge (Matt. 20:8). In this case, how is Jesus “the Lord?” Both definitions apply to Him. The Bible reveals that Jesus is God (John 1:1-3). So, He is the Lord God Almighty who made us. And along with that, He should be considered to be our Lord and Master. Those who respond correctly are willing to confidently state their allegiance to Jesus as the Lord.
Second, those who responded correctly, believed something. They believed in their heart that God raised Jesus from being dead. To understand this, you may need to go back to what the Bible says about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. In each of the gospels, the writers reveal that Jesus not only died on the cross for our sins but that He was buried and then came back to life the third day (Matt. 27:27-28:10; Mark 15:16-16:11; Luke 23:26-24:12; John 19:16-20:18). These events were witnessed by people who were there, and they are accepted as true by all Christians. When they believe with their heart, they will confess what they believe.
They were not disappointed (9b,10b,11). You may have noticed that verse nine and verse ten end with a result. Those who confess Jesus as Lord and believe that God raised Him from the dead will be saved. This means that believers will be saved from God’s judgment against sin. Since none of us are good enough to be called righteous, we will be judged by God unless He somehow considers us righteous. So, each person needs to be saved from that judgment. But is there any chance of being pardoned?
Yes, Paul said that whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame. In other words, those who believe will not be disappointed. There have been many times when people have made promises and not kept them. But God is different. What He has promised, He will do. He always keeps His promises. So, those who put their faith in Jesus will not be disappointed on Judgment Day. God will keep His promise and save all those who have believed.
They called on the Lord (12-13). In these verses, Paul stated that whoever called on the name of the Lord would be saved. There is no difference between those who are Jewish and those who are not. Any person, regardless of background, can call on the Lord and be saved. But what does it mean to call on the name of the Lord?
Today, we use the word “call” to mean talking with someone on the phone. We look up someone’s number in our contacts and then place a call to talk to that person. So, it may seem like calling on the name of the Lord means that we talk to God. Is that the case here? Is God promising to listen to the person who calls out to Him in prayer? I think so.
In the passage quoted by Paul (Joel 2:32), the prophet was talking about coming judgment that could be escaped by calling on the name of the Lord. In that case, the people knew that the Lord Himself was the only One who could help them. So, they called out to Him for help. The promise was that those who called on the name of the Lord would be saved. The same is true in Romans 10. Those who call out to God, believing in Jesus, will be saved from the judgment for their sins. And God doesn’t differentiate who He will listen to based on their ethnicity. All who call on Him will be saved.
Now, what have we learned thus far? We have learned that there were some who were ignorant of what God required for righteousness. There were some who were blind to the truth that had been preached to them. But there were also some who believed and were saved. All of this leads to some very important applications. - How does it apply?
Have you been ignorant and blind?
Like the zealous Israelites from many years ago, there are still many people who are ignorant of and blind to what God requires. They think that they can win God’s favor by being especially good—especially in comparison to other people. If they can only do enough good deeds during their lifetime, surely God will notice and consider them good enough to go to heaven.
Sadly, this way of thinking displays an ignorance of God’s standard for righteousness. God is not angry with sinners because they have done a few things wrong. His wrath has been revealed against those who are sinful and who have rejected His ways. Instead of repenting of their sin and seeking God’s forgiveness, they seek to establish their own righteousness by doing good things. This is not what God desires and requires. He requires perfect righteousness not just the best you can do.
What about you? Have you been ignorant of what God requires? Have you been thinking that your supposed goodness will appease God’s wrath on Judgment Day. If so, the Bible describes you as ignorant and blind. Today, you need to throw out this wrong thinking and submit to God. Stop trying to be good and put your faith in the One who actually is. Jesus, the perfect Son of God, lived a perfectly righteous life that pleased God. Remember what God the Father said about Him? “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” When He died on the cross, He paid the penalty for all of the sins of the world, including yours.
Have you been saved?
All of us will one day stand before God Almighty. He will judge everyone for their sins. But only those who have called on the name of the Lord will be saved. Only those who have believed in their heart and confessed their faith will be saved from God’s judgment. If you have called out to the Lord in faith, you have been saved. But if not, today is the day of salvation. Put your faith in Jesus and call out to the Lord to be saved today.
Conclusion
The message Paul presented in Romans 10 is an important one. And it is a message that needs to be proclaimed throughout the world. That is why, in the rest of the chapter, he encourages believers to preach the good news to others. Nobody will call on the Lord unless they have believed. And nobody will believe unless they hear the good news. Let us who know the Lord be faithful to spread the good news to everyone so that they can believe and be saved.
Bibliography
“What does it mean that ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (Joel 2:32; Romans 10:13)?” as viewed at https://printer.gotquestions.net/GeneratePF?articleId=64663 on 10/4/2025.
Witmer, John A., “Romans” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary New Testament, USA: SP Publications, 1983.
Footnotes